Is there an API that allows to me to programmatically pull the latest update from the store and refresh the current version that the user is using? If not, is it possible for the current app to programmatically know that there is a new version available?
Any samples/examples would be highly appreciated.
You can't programmatically install any Store software. But you can programmatically open the Store to let it do the user manually.
That said, there's no official Store API which you could ask about app versions (you might be able to parse the Store's HTML pages, but I recommend against this approach).
What you can do: Put a small XML file on your website which contains the latest app version number. Your app then can read this file and compare this desired version against the running app's version. If the app is outdated, the app can show a message box to the user.
I ended up using WNS and Azure Notification Hub to send a push notification to the app when it is launched. The notification is in the form of a toast message that essentially states that a new release is available. But if you updated/downloaded the app after xx/xx/xxxx, no updates are necessary.
I know it is a little cludgy but at least the users now know that the version of the app that they are using may be dated. I control the notification through Azure Mobile Service (which is free for up to 10 apps) and can fully modify the actual script.
Related
What happens when a developer updates an app? Does the user that updates the said app download a whole new app or is the windows app store smart enough like play store to just download the changes?Can anyone give logical explanation how it works in windows store?
>>Does the user that updates the said app download a whole new app or is the windows app store smart enough like play store to just download the changes?
When the developers created package for their project, and chose generate app bundle always, the user can download faster with an app bundle, because they only download the assets that they need. Then they don’t need to download a whole new app to update. If the developers didn’t choose this, the user may need to download a whole new app.
>>Can anyone give logical explanation how it works in windows store?
For example, if you create a app, then you choose generate app bundle always when packaging your app and publish this in the Windows Store. The customer need to download 100MB to require this app. After a period of time, you update this app, the customer just download the assets that they need to update our app, maybe just download 10MB.
Is it possible to submit a new app or update an existing app to Windows Phone store with any automate process instead of uploading it manually?
Please suggest the solutions for the same.
I found few automated tools for ios application submission like fastlane
Not possible at the moment and no indication about such feature coming.
There may be such functionality soon.
From https://blogs.windows.com/buildingapps/2016/03/31/announcing-new-dev-center-capabilities-to-increase-app-revenue-and-streamline-management/:
The new Windows Store submission API will be made available in
preview, beginning today and rolling out in waves. This new API offers
a subset of functionality provided by Dev Center as a REST API and
supports these actions for published apps: submitting updates,
modifying metadata, and adding/removing in-app products. You can
request access to the preview through the “Feedback” tab in Dev Center
by selecting “Submission API” in the “Suggestions” tab. Access will be
granted in waves, beginning with a small group of developers. Build
session: https://channel9.msdn.com/Events/Build/2016/B839
When there is an update available in store. If you click on the app it opens an information page where you can see the changelog for the current version of app. Some developers provide this information some doesn't. I wonder where is this information is written in app code. Is it app manifest file ?
To remind again, i don't mean in store description.
There's no built-in way to store/display a changelog. The changelog you see in some apps is handled manually, like you would do to display any other kind of information.
I am trying to build a Sports App for Windows Store .I am not able to understand how am I suppose to change the data day on day. The App initially will have some static content and the data has to be updated daily. Kindly guide me how to do this , since this is my first App for windows store.
I assume you have the data on a server somewhere. So use the HttpClient control to access the data, use Linq/XML to parse it, and then load it in your UI however you've designed it to do so.
You can show updates in a live tile with this sample: http://code.msdn.microsoft.com/Simple-Live-Tiles-575b1d66
Also look at Windows Azure Mobile Services: http://www.windowsazure.com/en-us/develop/mobile/
I am creating an HTML5 offline web app for use on iOS and Android.
Is there a mechanism for notifying the user that an update is available - e.g., a red dot on the application's shortcut icon? If there isn't, would I be able to achieve this maybe with push notifications or some other way?
I understand that I can use the manifest file to declare which files the app should attempt to update from the server - but my client is asking if the app would be able to visually notify to the user of the need to update.
No, None of the app's code will run unless you launch the app, at which point it will automatically update based on the manifest if you are online. If you are off line then there is no way for the app to check if it needs to be updated.